Ghost King's Capture
by KittlyAbz
Summary: How Nico could've have been captured by Gaea when he can fight and call skeletons to his aid, especially in his father's kingdom. Adopted from HuntressBiancadiAngelo. First 10 chapters are hers, and beyond that it's all me!
1. Ghost King's Capture

_**Adopted from HuntressBiancadiAngelo. She gets the credit for the first 10 chapters. After that, it's all me!**_

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The first thing I realized when I woke up was a biting coldness. It confused me cause I was usually sleeping at Camp-half Blood or sleeping in my fathers palace where I had my own room. There was also a painful throbbing in my skull. It felt like my skull would burst at any moment. Where was I? What had happened? It was then that I remembered what had happened to me.

_Flashback_

I had been traveling for at least two days now and I still had no idea where the Doors to Death were. I was an inch from giving up, I had seen no sign of the doors being close and I probably should be helping my father control the Fields of Asphodel ghosts. It was a riot over there, not counting the Fields of Punishment where everyone was going crazy to get to the doors of death and be alive once again. Already one of the worst people in there had gotten out, Minos.

After the whole trying to use me to come back to life my father, Lord Hades, had sentenced him to eternal punishment. Unfortunately he was one of the first people to get out of the underworld, how I had no idea, he shouldn't have been able to get out with all the guards, Cerberus, and the furies. But he did, and, even though I would never admit it, I was scared. He would use any means necessary to kill make sure I got sent straight to Tarturus.

I was just about to give up when I saw it, two ghost were heading the way I was. One was a male who looked to be in his mid thirties and the other was a female who was in her early thirties. But then again you never can tell in the Underworld, for all I knew they could have been her for a day or decades. Their clothes were to new to be over twenty years old. Speaking of their clothes, they were torn in multiple places with blood splatters all over. They didn't like the type of people who would invite you into there house a glass of lemonade, and they especially didn't look like Percy's mom and step-dad, who were really nice.

"Well," I muttered to myself "There isn't anything that way that I know of, and since they shouldn't be here that only means one thing, the Doors are that way."

I couldn't exactly let them know I was following them, they would automatically recognize me, being the only son of Hades and all. So I went with the only thing I could think of, hiding in the shadows. I would hide in the shadows and follow them until I saw the Doors, at which time I would stop them and try to figure out how the doors could be closed.

So that is what I did. For the most part I didn't learn anything new, they just muttered about what they would do once they where alive again. The normal stuff, get revenge on the one who caused they death and those who double-crossed them and then continue whatever evil things they had been doing while they were alive. I honestly didn't want to know what they had done while alive, if they got the Fields of Punishment for it, it couldn't be good.

After a while of walking I saw it, it didn't look like doors but more like just a shimmer of bluish light that was continually expanding. I had to admit it looked pretty in all this darkness, a light at the end of the tunnel. Following the ghosts I made my way towards it. Just as I was about to tell them to stop and draw my Stygian Iron sword from its sheath at my side I heard an all to familiar voice.

"Ah...look if it isn't the Son of Hades, Nico di Angelo, himself." a cold, piercing voice from behind.

As I turned around I couldn't the cold lump in my stomach as I saw Minos, King of Crete's. He was armor and a crown on his head, but worst of was the fact that he was solid, not a shimmering ghost in the Underworld. He was human. This was not good, not good at all. Minos must have know what I was thinking for he laughed at me.

"What? Not happy to see me? I'm hurt." Minos mocked, faking emotional pain "Well, it isn't just me you have to worry about."

As he this the shadows began to move and form monsters and people. This definitely wasn't good. I was badly out numbered and from the look on their face they wanted to make sure I died a very, very painful death. But I soon found out this wasn't the worst of it.

"Hello, brother." a voice behind.

As I turned around I was shocked, no, petrified to see my sister, Bianca, standing there, very much alive. This couldn't be real. Bianca got reborn into a new life. But here she was standing in front of me.

"B-Bianca." I stutter in shock.

"Yes, it is I, Bianca, the sister you can so easily replace." She hissed at me, her voice dripping with venom.

"W-what, what are you talking abut, Bianca" I asked, thoroughly confused,what was she talking about.

"You know very well what I'm talking about!" Bianca screams at me, "You replaced me with that daughter of Pluto who nearly destroyed the world."

Hazel. Bianca was talking about Hazel. But, I didn't replace Bianca with Hazel. Hazel just deserved a second chance and Bianca wasn't there. The fact that my sister was accusing me of replacing her stung like I had been stabbed through with my own sword.

"Bianca, I didn't use Hazel to replace you, she just deserved a second chance." I try to explain.

"Oh, and I didn't. After the whole Labyrinth adventure you gave up trying to bring me back to life. And then when you finally had a chance you chose some other girl instead of me." Bianca screamed at me.

"What? No. I couldn't find you. I tried to find you, you were gone. Achilles told me that you had been reborn, even father you had been reborn. I thought you were gone. Hazel deserved her second chance." I desperately, Bianca was obviously mad at me and I couldn't stand it.

She was my older sister who I had looked up to my whole life, and here she was accusing me of betraying her for Hazel. As much as I loved Hazel, she would never be Bianca. Bianca would always have a special place in my heart and my unconditional love, love that nobody else would; except for maybe Percy, he was like an older brother to me.

"You left me, abandoned me. And now you will pay." Bianca snarled at me threw clenched teeth.

Next thing I knew Bianca had her sword drawn and was lounging at me, I barely had time to draw my sword and parry her move. I was shocked, this is my sister, why would she want to attack me?

Bianca continued to attack me, and all I could do was parry, she wouldn't allow me to get a move in, not that I would want to. Soon Minos joined in, it was then that I realized I was going to lose. I couldn't win against both of them, especially if it meant hurting Bianca.

Just as I thought this Minos got a hit in; using the butt of his sword he hit me in my head. I was soon on the ground with a horrible pain in my head, unable to get up. I could feel a sticky substance running down my face, most likely blood. Minos kicked my sword away, laughing at my expense.

"To bad you weren't much of a competition. After everything I would have thought you would be more of a challenge." laughed Minos. I could feel my blood boil with anger at this "king".

"I would have thought so to, guess he didn't want to hurt his _sister_." Bianca mockingly.

I was shocked. Why was Bianca acting like this? Why was she willing to hurt me? And why was she working with Minos? I could feel my heart breaking as I realized Bianca didn't care about me anymore, she didn't love me anymore.

I could feel the darkness closing in on me, so I whispered the last thing I could think of. "I'm sorry Bianca." Darkness then claimed me.

_Flashback Over_

I couldn't believe it. Why would Bianca ever work for Gaea. Oh yes, she had to be working for Gaea cause Minos had to be working for the earth goddess. But it still didn't make sense why Bianca was here and working for her. Or why she was mad at me, she was the one that to never hold grudges. It just didn't make sense. Especially because she was suppose to have gone to be reborn.

And where was I? As I looked around I realized that the walls looked like they were made out of earth, and there was no door anywhere. That left only one option: I was captured by Gaea. I was at her mercy. That thought made me shiver with fear. Gaea would make sure that I was never released, I got to close to the doors, already knew to much.

All of this thinking was beginning to hurt my head. Which just served to remind me that I most likely had a concussion now. Reaching up I felt the wound. It was impossible for me to hold in the hiss of pain when I touched it. As I drew my hand away I could see the blood on my fingers.

"Oh, wonderful not only am I in some prison but I'm still bleeding," I muttered under my breathe. "Hazel and Percy are gong to kill me."

Hazel. Percy. They were still on the quest. If they even came back, which I prayed to the gods they would, they wouldn't know where I was or what happened. And, for the first time in a while, I was scared. No one would be coming. Gaea would have me for as long as she wanted and, sooner or later, would kill me. I suddenly felt more alone then I had in a long time. If only Percy had never disappeared, or had known who I was. If he had I knew he wouldn't have let me go no matter ho much I argued, he would have forced me to stay at camp, or taken me on the quest. That had to be better than being here.

_BUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ_

No. I knew what that meant. It meant someone close to me was dying. The worst part was that I could tell that it was Hazel, Frank and Percy. They were all dying somehow. No no no, they couldn't die, they were like family to me. In Hazel's case she was. But as soon as the buzzing started it ended. They weren't dead. I could feel it, they had been close but they somehow were still alive. I let out a breathe I hadn't known I had been holding.

Exhausted, in pain, lonely, and scared I collapsed to the ground. Leaning back I drew my legs up to my chest, wrapping my arms around them. It was then that I realized that I was shaking. It was freezing in here, it had to be at most fifty degrees. And of course they took my Aviator jacket. Just another way to make me uncomfortable and for them to have the upper-hand.

At that moment I just wanted to sleep. Must have something to do with the concussion. I knew it would probably be a bad idea to go to sleep but I had already woke up once, how much damage could sleeping do. With that thought in my head I began to doze off. My last coherent thought was:

_Please Percy, find me before something truly bad happens._

With that I feel into a deep sleep.


	2. Conversation With Bianca

Still HuntressBiancadiAngelo's writing

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"Get up you lazy son of Hades!" shouted someone, a second later a rush of pain went through me as this person kicked me in the stomach.

With a small whimper I opened my eyes only to see Minos glaring down at me. I felt a shiver run through me. It was all to obvious that Minos wasn't happy at all. All the more reason for me to be wary of him.

"Well! Get up! I have other duties to do." Minos yelled at me while simultaneously grabbing me by the hair and yanking me up.

I couldn't help the yelp of pain that escaped my lips as he forced me up. It was less the kick to my stomach and having my haired pulled then it was the sudden dizziness that overtook me. Everything seemed to be swimming and I felt like vomiting right then and there. Would definitely serve him right. But on second thoughts he could do something verypainful to me; nope, guess vomiting over him would have to wait.

Before I could even realize what was happening Minos twisted me around, slamming me into the wall. This time I managed to hold back my cry of pain. Minos grabbed my arms, twisting them till I was sure they would break.

"Can't have you fighting back, can we?" Minos uttered while putting something onto my wrist, "These chains will make it impossible to fight back or use your powers. The more you try the more they will tighten. So, I recommend that you be a good boy."

He was definitely mocking me now. "Don't be so sure, I got out of your shackles before and I can do it again." I snarled at him through clenched teeth.

Minos sent a death glare at me, "We'll see how much of that feisty spirit remains after Lady Gaea has her time with you."

He then started to drag me out of the cell; it was then that I realized a door had appeared. Must be like the cells in my father's prison, I mused. He dragged me through many corridors, with many rooms. I didn't see many people but I had spotted some dracaena, which made sense, all monsters were siding with Gaea just like they had sided with Kronos. You'd think after last time they would have learned, but no they just had to join the bad guy who wanted to destroy the whole world.

The place was also pretty nice, you know in the evil hideout for the evil villain way. The corridors all had at least on dracaena guarding it so that no unwanted intruders got in. Which lowered my spirits at the thought of my friends having to fight them, if they even found out where I was. It was obvious though that this wasn't their main hideout, most likely Gaea had been smart and had multiple hideouts under the earth. But I had seen a room that seemed to be a strategy room, which meant if I did get out of these restraints I could see just where Gaea was planning to attack and how many she had at her command.

I was jolted out of my thoughts at the sound of a door being forced open. Right ahead of use two dracaena were opening up a door that looked to be made out of pure obsidian. I could tell from how big the door was that this was were Gaea was waiting for us. I could feel my stomach doing flip-flops at the thought of Gaea being in there.

"Come on, _Ghost King,_ Lady Gaea wants to have a little chat with you." Minos growled at me before dragging me threw the door and into the throne room.

It was enormous, was my first thought. The ceiling went up at least one hundred-fifty feet and the width of the room was at least one hundred feet. The room seemed to be made of igneous rocks: obsidian, basalt, gabbro, and granite, with crystals, rubies, emeralds, gold, and sapphires scattered over the walls. There were dozens of monsters lining the walls, all with weapons ranging from a sword, to a club, to a bow with arrows. At the far end of the room was a throne made out of a mix of skeletons and jewels that reminded me of the Pluto Shrine. What got me was that right next to the throne was Bianca. I guess I should have expected her to be here if she was working for Gaea.

It seemed that I had spent to much time looking around for Minos gave me a rough shove in the back before leading me to the throne. Why would Gaea even need a throne, it's not like she has a body, she is the earth. Stupid ADHD, now wasn't the time to think about why they had a throne, now was the time to find a way out of here and find out Gaea's plans.

Where was Gaea anyway? Minos said it was her that wanted to talk to me. Out of nowhere a face began to form out of the earth that made the wall. Soon I was facing a giant woman's face with no body that was completely made out of the earth.

"Hello Son of Hades. Welcome to one of my many underground hideouts." Gaea purred to me.

"Oh, shut up and just get to the point of dragging me here." I snarled at the earth goddess.

That just earned me a hard hit in the head that sent the room spinning and the nauseated feeling to return.

"Kneel before Lady Gaea." Minos commanded.

I made no move to do that. I was willing to bow to my father, Zeus, Poseidon, any other god that didn't fight for Kronos, but there was no way in Tartarus that I would kneel before Gaea. But it seemed that it wasn't my choice for a second later I was on my knees after Minos kicked right at the joint. I had to admit that it hurt, but I wasn't going to let them have the satisfaction of hearing me cry out in pain.

"Tsk tsk. You aren't being very nice, after all, Minos wanted to kill you right away. But I guess you are right, I should get straight to the point. I want you to join me." Gaea declared.

"Never! I wouldn't betray my friends, or the gods." Gaea had to be crazy, I would never betray my friends. Especially Percy, after everything I would never betray him. He had been there for me even after I had drawn my sword with the intention to kill, had invited me into his parent's apartment when I came to tell him about the River Styx, and had forgiven me after I took us on that "detour" to see my father. I wasn't about to betray his trust again.

"You really think about it. I mean what have the gods ever done for you. Nothing, nothing at all except to make your life harder." Gaea remarked.

"What do you know about my life?" I shout at her, she was starting to get on my nerves.

"She's right Nico. Gaea only speaks the truth." Looking over I see that it was Bianca who had spoke.

"W-what?" I stutter, but not because I was scared but because of her change in tone, before she had been angry but now she was talking to me like she had before she had died.

"Gaea only speak the truth. The gods have been messing with our lives for a long time. Well, not really gods but goddess, Hera. She's been messing with us since we lived in New Orleans.

Okay, gods messing with my life made little sense, but Hera messing with my life made a whole bunch more sense. She seemed to love messing with demigods lives and it barely shocked me that she messed with my life somehow. What I wanted to know was what she messed with.

As if reading my mind Bianca answered "Hera's the reason Mama is dead. She told Zeus where we were but made sure that Hades was there to protect us. She made sure that Artemis and the Hunters would be there to hunt the manticore. Messed with my head so that I would join and then go on the quest. Messed with my head again and made me pick up the statue and then sacrifice myself. Had Hades give you Minos as a mentor and then become friends with Percy Jackson. Made sure you knew about Styx. And most of all she made sure that I was out of the way and that you would bring that Pluto girl back to life." Bianca explained to me, her voice still in that nice soothing way, though now you could here an edge to it.

I was shocked. I couldn't believe that Hera had done all of that. Though it did make sense. This just hardened my feelings toward Hera, she is just as evil as Kronos and Gaea.

"See Nico, all of this should never have happened. Join Gaea, I don't want to lose you again. I'm sorry about the other day, I thought that you had known. Join Gaea and we can be together again." while Bianca was saying this she was also walking towards me. She finished what she was saying the same time she had reached me. Cupping my check she said "I love you Nico, and I don't want to be seperated from you again."

I felt tears well up in my eyes. How long had I wanted to be reunited with Bianca? How many nights had I stayed up wishing for Bianca to be alive? Praying for her to be alive. And now her she was, standing in front of me saying she wanted me to stay with her. It was so tempting. So tempting to just say yes and stay with her.

But no. No. No. No. This wasn't right. I would be joining Gaea and would be fighting against the gods and my friends. No matter how much I wanted to be with my sister this would be wrong. I felt a pang in my stomach at what I was about to say.

Pulling away from Bianca I found my voice "No. No. No matter how much I want to be with you, joining Gaea isn't the right way. I will never join Gaea willingly, no matter what I can get in return. I'm sorry Bianca, I truly am." the last part I whisper so low I doubt anyone could hear it.

Anyone could see the change in Bianca's face and posture. Her whole body became stiff, her lips pursed, and her eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean no?" she hisses, dangerously low.

"I mean no, I'm not joining Gaea." I say, my voice low. I didn't want to be saying this, I wanted my sister.

"And here I was thinking that you wanted me back. Well I guess I'm mistaken. You obviously don't care!" Bianca screamed at me. I couldn't help but wince at her shouting.

"No, Bianca, that's not what I mean. Of course I want to be with you. You're my sister and I love you." I shout at Bianca's retreating back as she walked towards another exit.

She stopped right before exiting and turned her head to look at me "I don't love you. I hate you. You're nothing to me." She hisses before exiting.

I feel like I had just been stabbed in the stomach. I couldn't comprehend what Bianca had just said. This couldn't be happening, it just couldn't be. Bianca couldn't hate me, she just couldn't.

"Take him back to his cell, we'll have another chat later." Gaea smirks at me.

"Yes my Lady." Minos says, bowing low to he ground before grabbing me roughly from the ground and forcing me out of the throne room.

It seems to take less time coming back to my cell than it did going to the throne room. Soon I'm getting thrown into the cell. Minos unhooks my shackles from each other but doesn't take them off, instead he hooks chains to them and secures them to one of the walls to make sure I didn't have any chance to get out. At that point I didn't care anymore.

After Minos left the cell I slide down to the ground, feeling helpless and broken, wishing that Percy would find me and that Bianca would be like she was before hand.


	3. Percy's Dreams

_**Still HuntressBiancadiAngelo**_

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"We should get some sleep." suggested Annabeth. I agreed wholeheartedly to that suggestion. I was about to fall asleep standing up.

We had just gotten back onto the Argo II after fighting of some of Gaea's enforcements. We had just landed at on of the Ionian Islands to relax for a second and fix the mast, which had been cracked during a fight with a sea monster; one of Gaea's minions. The mast had been leaning dangerously to the side and we just barely made it to Ionian. Unfortunately right after we, meaning Leo, fixed the mast we were attacked by a dozen Roman soldiers and dracaena and a minotaur. We managed to defeat them and with no major injuries, just some minor bruises and cuts.

Tomorrow we were heading for the island of Crete. It seemed that Minos had come back to life and had an idea to destroy the gods. He probably did to, considering how close he had come to coming back to life and know he had. He would stop at nothing to get his revenge on the gods. Considering how evil he is it still shocks me that he was one of the judges in the Underworld.

"I agree with that. Goodnight." Leo cheerfully said while turning around and walking towards his room.

After some quick "good-nights" we all went to our room to get some well deserved rest. We had all got our own rooms to sleep in, a lot like our cabins. It went without saying that my room was an ocean themed, being a son of Poseidon and all. It took only a few seconds after laying down in my bed to fall asleep. But this sleep would be anything but peaceful.

I was in some type of throne room completely made out of rocks and crystal. It had to be underground. Any other time I would be staring around in shock at all the jewels and how big it was but my eyes were drawn to three people at the end of the room. Well, actually one of them was Gaea, that much was obvious, her being completely made out of earth. Standing in front of was a male and female. The male I could tell was Minos in all of his evil glory. He was wearing a crown and battle armor. The female had long dark hair and was petite, tall but thin, like a popular girl from school. She had a sword hanging at her side as well as a bow and quiver full with arrows. She looked familiar but with her back turned to me I couldn't tell who she was.

"My Lady, those idiot demigods are coming to Crete. They will be here by tomorrow afternoon. What do you wish for me to do?" it was Minos speaking. How did he know we were coming? Tomorrow so wasn't going to be easy.

"Gather your enforcements and be ready to fight, but try not to hurt any of them, especially Perseus Jackson and Hazel Levesque. I don't want them dead yet, at least not before they see their friend Nico di Angelo." Gaea purred out to Minos.  
Wait, Nico? They had Nico? I knew he had been captured but I had no idea where he was being held. Looks like not only will we be stopping Minos but we would be getting Nico back. I felt my heart sore at that thought. Nico was like a little brother to me and when I found out that he'd been captured it was torture to me. I didn't want anything to happen to Nico. He'd already been through to much for a kid. Now that I knew at least who had him I was going to make sure I got him out of the situation he was in.

Minos let out a chuckle "Oh, yes, I'm sure the son of Hades would be happy to see his little friends at our mercy. Maybe I could make him beg us not to kill his friends," the last part Minos said more to himself then anyone else, "It would be very interesting to see how he takes that his friends are goi-" Minos never got to finish his sentence.

"Quiet. Someone is watching us." the girl hissed at Minos.

That voice was strangely familiar but I couldn't put my finger on it. That was until she turned around. I automatically recognized the facial features of Bianca di Angelo. But that was impossible. Bianca was dead, wasn't she? And even if she was alive, for she seemed to be, why would she be with Minos and Gaea? That just made no sense. Especially if Nico was being held prisoner by them. No sense at all.

"Who is it?" Gaea asked, the purr to her voice disappearing only to be replaced with anger that someone was listening in to her conversation.

"Salt and sea breeze. Perseus Jackson. It's Perseus Jackson." Bianca cried out.

I had no idea how she knew it was me, but then again Nico had sensed me before when I had seen him in a dream. Must be a children of Hades thing. I didn't have much time for thinking about it for right at that moment an arrow was sent straight towards me, courtesy of Bianca. I closed my, waiting to feel an arrow going right through me. But it never happened. Opening my eyes I was shocked to see that instead of the throne room I was in sometime of cell.

Hearing a whimper behind me I spun around. To say I was shocked would be an understatement. Nico was there curled up on the ground with multiple wounds ranging from bruises to what looked like a dagger wound. Luckily the dagger wound seemed to be in a nonfatal place. That was probably the only good thing about it. There were shackles around his wrists and one around his neck. You could see his skin starting to become irritated by the shackles rubbing against it. The chains lead fully into the wall where they seemed to just merge with it.

Dropping to my knees I whispered to Nico, hoping he could hear me "Nico, come on wake up, it's me, Percy."

Nico's eyelids fluttered open, seeming to see nothing, "P-p-Percy." the kid stuttered out, frowning like he was trying to remember who I was. Suddenly his eyes lighted up and he focused on me "Percy!" he cried out.

"Ya, Nico, it's me. Now listen I need you to tell me where exactly you are right now." I needed to find out where exactly he was on the island, otherwise I would be looking around for days before finding him.

"I-I don't know. I was unconscious when I was taken here." Nico stammers while pushing himself up into a sitting position.

All of a sudden Nico let out a cry of pain and clutched his head. I immediately began to worry more. The pain seemed to stem from his head and if there was one thing I knew it was that head injuries were dangerous and painful.

"Nico. Nico, what hurts?" I ask, trying to get his attention back to me.

"My head," he ground out between clenched teeth "Dizzy."

Not good "Nico, what happened, head injury?"

"Hit in head with sword hilt." Nico gasped out.

Definitely not good. I didn't know much but he most likely had a concussion. And concussions were never good for the person who got them.

"You must have a concussion. Real quickly, 'cause I'm sure we'll get interrupted by someone, what is Bianca doing here?" I asked the question that had been in my mind for since I saw, but I immediately regretted by when a look of pain fluttered across his face.

"She-she came back to life and then joined Gaea. She was with Minos when they caught me." Nico explains, I can hear his voice quivering and see the unshed tears in his eyes.

"Well, you won't have to worry soon, some friends and I will be landing at Crete tomorrow." I inform Nico, no matter how many monsters they have attacking us there was no way I was going to leave Nico.

"NO!" shouts Nico, his eyes wild with fear "They'll kill you, or capture you and force you to help them. You can't come here. It will be the end of you."

I couldn't help but feel proud of him, here he was getting tortured and he still didn't want anyone to get hurt. He was willing to sacrifice his life to make sure I didn't die and the gods continued to reign. You could tell just how scared he was and yet he still thought of others over himself. But I couldn't just leave him here to rot.

"No, Nico, we were coming anyways, we will just kill to birds with one stone and get you back. No arguing." the last part was added cause I could see him getting ready to argue with me about getting out of here.

All of a sudden everything started getting blurry. I knew what that meant, that this conversation was over for now.

"I'm sorry, Nico. I've got to go for now, just hold on a little longer. We'll be getting you out of here in no time." I manage to say this just as the dream ends but I swear that I heard Nico whimper for me to stay with him.

Sitting bolt up right in the bed I quickly scan the room to make sure no one else was in it. When I was sure that there was no unwanted visitors I turned my thoughts to what I had heard and my conversation with Nico. Minos had to be a general for Gaea and Bianca was working for him. I just couldn't believe that she would actually hurt her brother like that. Nico practically worshiped the ground she walked on, had spent a year trying to bring her back, had been willing to do anything to bring her back and she just helped bring him to Gaea. I couldn't but feel angry at Bianca for doing that to Nico. And all the wounds on Nico, it was all to obvious that he was getting tortured by Minos, and probably by some other people too. I had to get him out of there.

Laying back down I made a promise: no matter what I would get Nico out of there and nothing was going to stop me.


	4. Percy's Capture

Still not mine

* * *

"We should split up so we can cover more ground and find Nico." I ordered.

We had just landed on Crete and about to start are search for Nico. Since Gaea's army was either demigod or monster there had to be some way into her hideout, or at least I hoped so. Ever since my dream conversation with Nico I had been extremely worried, I was going to get him out of Gaea's clutches one way or another.

After everyone had woken up I had told them about the dream. Of course everyone had been worried, even Jason, Piper, and Leo who barely knew him. Hazel been panicking since Gaea told her that Nico had been captured and after finding out Nico was hurt she went into a full state of panic and worry over him. Annabeth and Grover had pretty much the same feelings as I had. Thalia was, shockingly, worried as well, said something about how no one should be captured by Gaea.

We had all decided that Nico was probably close to where Gaea's plans were. So our plan was to find the entrance, signal the others, get Nico, figure out Gaea's plans, and then get back to the Argo ii as quickly as possible. I just hoped it went like that, but then again, when do our plans ever work out?

"That would work, just remember to signal the rest of us if you get into trouble or find the entrance." Annabeth agreed.

"Okay then." After I quickly gave them all directions and Annabeth gave me a kiss, we all split up.

* * *

I had been walking for a long time and still didn't know were the entrance was. The only good thing was that I hadn't run into any of Gaea's minions.

"Hello Perseus Jackson." Guess I spoke to soon.

Turning around I felt my anger boil as I saw Minos. Next to him was Bianca, and behind them were twelve dracaena, but no other monsters or demigods.

"Where is Nico?" I demand.

"Oh, what? I'm not good enough? I'm hurt," Minos mocks "Besides, the only way you will be seeing him is if you become our prisoner as well. So we can either do this the hard way or you can just surrender to us."

"What? Are you crazy?" I question while uncapping riptide.

"Very well, capture him."

With that one order all the dracaena lunged at me. Dodging their first attacks I rolled around them, slashing my sword through three of them. They immediately evaporated, leaving nothing behind. I continued to fight them and knock them down one by one. When there was only three left I felt someone behind. Spinning around I wasn't ready for the sword that Bianca swung towards me, I immediately brought my sword up to parry. But Bianca wasn't aiming to kill me, no, instead she hit my wrist, with just enough force to send Riptide flying. Once that was taken care of Bianca put her sword underneath my chin.

"I recommend that you don't move." Bianca hissed at me.

Right after she said that I felt my arms being twisted back. I held back the cry of pain that was dying to come out. When a cold metal being snapped around my wrist I realized with shock that what was being placed around my wrist were shackles.

"Time for you to see your little friend, Perseus Jackson," Minos hissed in my ear before starting to drag me away.

I need to get out of this, and the only way I could was if I convinced Bianca that what she was doing was wrong.

"Bianca! This isn't right. What about your brother, Nico? He's being hurt and needs your help" I was sure that the Nico thing would work so I was shocked by her next words.

"I don't care about that brat. And he is **not **my brother. After years of taking care of him I will finally be rid of him forever. I could care less if he was in pain. In fact I wish that he would die" Bianca laughed.

This didn't make sense. When I had first met Bianca she would have done anything to protect Nico. Now she was willing to let him die. I realized that I could not convince Bianca that this was wrong.

Working a little owl pin out of my pocket I dropped it to the ground hopping that Annabeth or one of the others would find it and know what happened. Maybe this would actually help, I would know where Nico was, I thought trying to be optimistic.

* * *

When I heard the "door" being forced out I let out a groan. Either it was Minos to cause me more pain or it was Bianca to tell me how much she hated me, or maybe it was one of them coming to drag me to Gaea, who knew. When Minos entered the cell I got ready for more pain. I was confused when he walked over to the chains and took them out of the wall.

"You're going to have a little conversation." from the way Minos said it I knew this wasn't a "normal" conversation with Gaea.

"Get up." with that Minos grabbed me by my arm and pulled me to a standing position, pulling on my numerous wounds, I bit down on my lip to hold back the scream that I wanted to let out.

I was sure that at least three of my ribs were broken, the stab wounds were infected, my right leg had at least one fracture, and that my left arm had two fractures, including my wrist. The shackles were also painfully tight, I had been an idiot and tried to use my powers, seemed for once Minos was telling the truth for the shackles had tightened. I just prayed to Tyche that Percy would get here soon.

As soon as the shackles were fully secured Minos led me out of the cell. It didn't take very long to get there but it felt hours to me as pain continued to shoot from my wounds. The door to the throne room banged open and Minos shoved me inside. Let's see Gaea, the monsters, Minos, Bianca, and-

No it couldn't be. There in front of Gaea, with shackles similar to mine, was Percy. But no, Percy was suppose to save me, not get caught and placed into the same place as me. No. No. It wasn't right. I could feel tears prickling my eyes as Minos shoved me forward.

I quickly got down onto my knees. The second "conversation" I had with Gaea I hadn't bowed and I ended up getting whipped twenty-seven times, that was not something I ever wanted to go through again. I could tell that Percy was shocked that I was willingly kneeling in front of Gaea.

"Well, see son of Hades, your savior is know in the same boat as you." Gaea laughed at me.

"H-How? W-What?" I stuttered out, I just couldn't believe this.

-Heroes of Olympus-

I felt my heart break when I heard Nico's stuttered questions and turned his eyes to my. His eyes will filled with fear and sadness. Nico was pure out scared. He had expected me to come in and save him, not got captured and be force into the same situation he was in. It just wasn't fair, Nico didn't deserve this type of torture.

"It seems that Perseus Jackson isn't that great of a fighter. But that doesn't matter, does it? I think that you two should have a nice little conversation," Gaea said to us "Minos. Take them back to Nico's cell.

Minos nodded and grabbed me and Nico up, dragging us into some other corridor. After walking for what I would guess to be about five minutes we entered a cell made completely out of earth. I recognized it as the same cell that Nico was in when I talked to him. Minos added chains to our shackles and then put them into the wall.

"Well, let's see how long it takes for the other demigods to "find" you, shall we?" Minos laughs at us "Unfortunately, I have other things I need to do, so I can't have a private "conversation" with you, Ghost King."

I could see Nico shudder at what Minos said and I wondered what he had really meant. It definitely wasn't going to be a "conversation", it was probably torturing Nico from the look on his face. After Minos left I turned to face Nico completely.

"I'm sorry Nico. I was suppose to get you out of here and instead I get captured as well." I was angry at myself for letting this happen, I should never fallen into Bianca's trap.

"No, Percy, you tried your best to rescue me. We'll find a way out of this." Nico whispered to me.

I was shocked, Nico was still trying to be strong and not bow to Gaea. Then again it, sadly, wasn't shocking. At ten the kid ran away and for a year only had Minos, who wasn't much help, and then even after he came back to Camp Half-blood he didn't feel like he was accepted. It wasn't until after the battle with Kronos that he started staying at Camp. According to Annabeth and Grover, after I disappeared Nico just left to try and fine me since he would know if I died and could travel all over the world. They told me that sometimes Nico would shadow travel so much in a short amount of time that he would pass out from exertion. Nico had been desperate to find me. I thought of Nico as a little brother and he thought of me as a big brother, he didn't want to lose another person he cared about. Noticing Nico's eyes beginning to droop I decided it was time for Nico to get some sleep.

"Nico," I waited till he looked up at me to continue "Go to sleep. It will be okay." I held up a hand to silence Nico from arguing with me "Nico, you need sleep more than I do."

At this Nico nodded. It was painfully obvious that he hadn't been getting much sleep, there were dark bags underneath his eyes. Nico curled up next to me on the ground and was soon fast asleep. Leaning back, I kept my eyes on the door, no one was going to hurt Nico, they would have to go through me first.

* * *

I knew Nico wasn't having a normal dream, in mortal context, when he whispered for Bianca not to do something. Moving closer, to hear what he was muttering about, I jumped backwards as much as I could when Nico sat straight up. His eyes were filled with fear, worry, sadness, and, shockingly, anger.

"Nico, what's wrong?"

"She's not actually doing this. She doesn't want to be." Nico muttered to himself, not even realizing that I was here.

"What?" I was confused, who was "she"?

Nico turned to look at me "That isn't really Bianca."


	5. What Really Happened to Bianca

_**Still not mine**_

* * *

I was in the Underworld, where, I had no idea. I only knew it was the Underworld because of how depressing and dark it was. The last thing I had remembered was going to sleep in that cell next to Percy. Had to be a dream. That thought was enforced when I saw Bianca, still a ghost.

But what was Bianca doing here? When she was in the Underworld she was always in the Esylum. Wondering what she had been doing here I walked towards her. As I got closer I could her muttering about something.

"Stupid Hera, taking me away from the Esylum and putting me here. Stupid Hera." Bianca muttered under her breathe.

Hera? Hera had put her here? But why? Before I could continue that line of thought A figure began to form out of the darkness. Shivers ran through my body as this "thing" completely formed. It had giant pitch black wings and was completely veiled with darkness, and I actually mean darkness, its close were made out of a mist like darkness. The darkness made a robe with a hood, the hood was completely covering its face. It was at least ten feet tall and was in a chariot with pitch black horses. Wait. Darkness, black wings, and a chariot. Nyx, this was Nyx, Goddess of Darkness and the Night. Oh this was not good, she was above titans, and from what I had heard in myths, even Zeus bowed down to her.

"Hello, Daughter of Hades." a voice came out of the hood.

"Who are you?" Bianca demanded.

"Not very nice." Snarled Nyx "I am Nyx, Goddess of the Night and Darkness. And I have come here to give you a proposal: join Gaea."

Bianca looked offended "Or what? You'll kill me."

"No. Something much worse. You'll either join Gaea or you will be forced to. And if that happens I couldn't guarantee your brothers safety.

"Nico?" my sister asks, her eyes wide.

"Yes, him. If you agree to join Gaea and your brother does not fight against her than he will be safe."

If I didn't fight. I would fight no matter what, I wouldn't just sit by and watch the world fall apart. Bianca seemed to know this.

"You're crazy if you think Nico would just sit out this war. He wouldn't just watch his friends die. He's a fighter and would fight against Gaea with all hes got," their was a hint of pride in Bianca's voice, "And I will not join Gaea. You can try and make me join her all you want, but I won't."

"Idiot girl. Do you really think you can just say no to me? Even the king of the gods, Zeus, is afraid of me." Nyx sounded angry that anyone would say no to her.

"Well, I'm not. I'm already dead, there's nothing else you can do to me."

"Oh, but that is where you are wrong. Your body might be dead but you are a soul, and souls can be forced to do things they wouldn't normally do. I have powers over any mortal I wish, it isn't very hard to get into the head of a mortal," as Nyx snarled this the darkness seemed to close in on them, "Be ready to become my puppet, girl."

The darkness started to surround Bianca from all sides. Her eyes widened and she began to struggle against it. Nyx was chanting in ancient Greek.

"Η κόρη του Άδη είναι δικό μου για πάντα. Αυτή θα κάνει ό, τι θέλω χωρίς ερώτηση. Αυτή θα πρέπει να είναι μαριονέτα μου μέχρι που βολεύει να την αφήσει να πάει. Αυτή είναι δική μου για όλη την αιωνιότητα."

I immediately realized what she was saying: This daughter of Hades is mine for forever. She shall do all that I wish without question. She shall be my puppet till I see fit to let her go. She shall be mine for all eternity. She was taking over Bianca.

"Bianca!" I screamed "No. Nyx you can't do this!" I didn't realize till later that my screaming would do nothing.

As the darkness closed in fully on her, her eyes turned black and she became as stiff as wood. This couldn't actually be happening, Bianca was under the control of Nyx. Wait, she was under the control of Nyx, that meant that she wasn't really on Gaea's side, that was the only good thing out of this.

"Daughter of Hades, will you go through the Doors of Death and join Gaea?" Nyx asked, underneath her hood her eyes glowed a dark blue.

"Yes, Lady Nyx." Bianca answered as her eyes went back to their normal color.

"Very well girl. Go to the Doors of Death, Minos will be waiting for you on the other side, follow him to Lady Gaea." with that Nyx disappeared into the darkness.

Bianca began to walk away "No Bianca! Wait!" but as I shouted it everything began to fade out of focus.

The next thing I knew I was sitting up, still in the cell "She's not actually doing this. She doesn't want to be." I muttered to myself.

"What?" someone nearby asks.

Looking around I see Percy sitting close to me, a confused look on his face "That isn't really Bianca."

* * *

What Nico had just said confused me. Bianca wasn't really Bianca? "What are you talking about?"

"I saw it, in my dream. Hera sent Bianca to some other place in the Underworld and Nyx appeared there. Nyx took over Bianca's mind when she refused to join Gaea. That's not really Bianca doing all those things, we need to help her!" Nico's voice had continually been rising till it was nearly a shout at the end.

Okay, so maybe Bianca wasn't really doing this, intentionally. But if Nyx was controlling her I didn't see how we could help her. In the myths Nyx wasn't someone you wanted to get in a fight with.

"Nico, if what your saying is true," I saw anger flash in Nico's eyes at that "then there really isn't a way to help her. Nyx is sister to Gaea, how are we suppose to fight her? I would like to save Bianca to but it just isn't possible right now." I explained to Nico, trying to be as nice as I could with my words, Nico wasn't going to like this.

I was right, Nico's eyes seemed to flair with anger "Cosa vuol dire che non possiamo salvarla? Ha salvato la vita e ora si sta solo andando a lasciare il suo continuare ad essere burattino personale di Nyx. Lei è mia sorella e ho intenzione di ottenere la schiena in un modo o in un altro. Si erano dispostit a rischio la tua vita per me, perché non lei?"

"What?" that hadn't been English, Greek, or Latin, honestly I hadn't been sure what language it was.

"What do you mean 'what'" Nico questions.

"That wasn't English, Greek, or Roman." I say to Nico.

Realization dawns on his face and he curses in Ancient Greek before looking up at me "I was speaking Italian. When I'm stressed or angry I speak in Italian without realizing it." Nico explains.

"That is really weird. When did you learn Italian anyway?"

"That doesn't matter right now. Why won't you hate Bianca?" Nico shouts at me.

Holding my hands up I try to use that common sense thing he had done when I was ready to cut his head off for taking me to Hades "Nico, if we fight Nyx now then we'll lose. But if we wait till after Gaea has been defeated then I'm sure the gods would be willing to convince Nyx to let Bianca go."

It seems to work 'cause Nico calms down, actually his anger isn't directed towards me anymore, he still looks pissed and ready to kill someone. If he had a sword I'm sure he would be stabbing someone by now. Sword. Riptide! Checking my pockets I realized with shock that Riptide wasn't in my pockets. But why not? It was suppose to always appear in my pockets.

As if reading my thoughts Nico answered me "These walls have magic inscribed into them, Nyx, Gaea, Tartarus, Erebus, Uranus and Eros put their own magic into them. They are all children of Chaos and siblings to Gaea, so naturally they have joined her. So Riptide won't be coming back to you."

I let out a puff of air that really sucked. Not only were we trapped in a cell underneath but my sword wouldn't be coming back to me. Which meant we wouldn't have any protection at all.

* * *

"Hey guys! Look! It's the owl statue!" Leo shouted at his friends.

Earlier everyone had regrouped only to find Percy missing. Annabeth had been close to tears when she found out that Percy was once again missing. Jason had taken control of the situation and decided that the first thing we had to do was check the area that Percy had went to. And now Leo had found the little statue that Percy kept in his pocket. He said that it was from some game called Mythomagic, whatever that was.

Annabeth was the first to be next to Leo, grabbing the statue out of Leo's hands.

"Well there are signs of a fight but no blood, which means that Percy wasn't hurt. The statue was a little farther away from the fight, which means that is the way they took him," Jason said while pointing North, "We should sleep here, it's getting dark. Annabeth if you go through the night and do figure out where he is you'll be barging in and won't have enough energy to fight." Jason said, knowing that Annabeth would argue with him.

Annabeth nodded and they all laid down near some trees with Jason staying up for the first shift of watching out for monsters. As the others feel asleep they all had similar thoughts: what had happened to Percy?

* * *

I had to fight this. I was hurting Nico, I didn't want to be hurting my brother. I loved him and always would. But what Nyx was forcing me to say was completely the opposite, I hadn't missed the look of pain in his face when I said that I hated him. I needed to break out of Nyx's control and help Nico. I knew that it would be close to impossible to break free from her mind control, but I would do anything if I was able to tell Nico that I loved him. And I knew that once Gaea was ready she would complete her ultimate plan. I shuddered just thinking of why she needed me. I had to break free before that happened or it would be impossible for me to help Nico, I would kill him. With that thought I began to claw once again at the bindings of darkness around my mind.


	6. Everything is Falling Into Place

Gaea's plans were finally in motion. That idiot girl wasn't able to defeat Lady Nyx's mind control and Lady Gaea had just gotten the last follower needed. Unfortunately that follower was the idiot Sisyphus who I had condemned to an eternity of pushing a boulder up a hill in the Underworld. But Gaea had needed another follower and he was willing to join, so I got rid of his punishment, still having the power of a judge in the Underworld, and brought him to this world. Now that Gaea had her full power she only needed a body and all would be in place. Only, unlike the body Kronos took, this person wouldn't need to take a dip in the River Styx. No, she was already strong enough to withstand Gaea being inside her. Yes, Bianca di Angelo would be the body for Gaea.

I was heading to the throne room at that moment to watch as Sisyphus pledged his loyalty to her and then took over the girl's body. I chuckled, just wait till that brat found out what had happened to his sister. It sure would be a shock.

Walking in to the throne room I noticed that I was the last one, the monster, the girl, Sisyphus, and Lady Gaea were already there.

Walking up I bowed before her "Lady Gaea."

"Ah, how nice of you to join us. The ceremony is about to begin." Gaea said, a smirk on her face.

Nodding I stepped back so that Sisyphus could get closer to Gaea.

"I pledge my loyalties to Lady Gaea, goddess of the Earth. I will fight alongside her and her army. I will fight against the gods. I am against the gods for what they have done to me. So I, Sisyphus, denounce the gods and pledge myself to Lady Gaea." Sisyphus pledged.

At the end of his pledge the whole earth shook as Lady Gaea was fully awoken. The earthquake sent everyone, including me, to the ground. Gaea laughed out loud as her powers were fully replenished. Her face glowed so bright that I had to turn away or my eyes would have gotten burned out of my skull. I looked back when the glowing stopped, Gaea looked the same but I knew that she was stronger now then she had been for over two thousand years.

"Minos. Minos. Begin the ceremony. Girl, get up here."

I nodded to acknowledge her while the girl just walked up. I took out a cup made out of pure Imperial Gold and a ceremonial dagger made out of Stygian Iron. Walking towards the girl I reached out and grabbed her arm, tightening my grip on the dagger I ran it across her skin. Blood immediately bubbled up, running down her skin. I placed the goblet right underneath her arm to catch the blood. Once the bleeding had stopped the goblet was nearly full. Picking up some dirt from the floor I dropped it into the goblet. It didn't matter how or where I got the dirt, it all came from Lady Gaea. I began to stir it while beginning my chant.

"With this offering of blood from the daughter of Hades, Bianca di Angelo, she shall forever be bonded to Lady Gaea, goddess of the Earth. Lady Gaea shall have for control of the body for all eternity. With this body Lady Gaea shall be able to move as she pleases and stay immortal as long as she is touching the earth. Bianca di Angelo, do you give your body to Lady Gaea?" I said in Ancient Greek.

She answered back in Ancient Greek as well "I willingly give my body as a vessel to Lady Gaea. I swear it on the River Styx."

"Then let this be. Bianca di Angelo shall, from this point on, be the vessel from Lady Gaea as long as Lady Gaea wishes it." With that I threw half of the blood mix on Lady Gaea and the other half on the girl.

I stepped back, not sure what would happen. I was promptly knocked off my feet as the earth began to shake again. A bright glowing began around both of them. Something I knew was that if you looked at a goddess true form you would immediately be killed, and this had to be the transference of her godly powers and mind to the girl; I turned away, shutting my eyes. A scream reached my ears as the girls body was invaded by the goddess. The scream lasted for at least three minutes before it, and the the glowing, died down.

Turning around I saw the girl still standing there. But her eyes were now glowing a bright green color. As she turned to me I could see the godly powers radiating off of her.

"It as worked, Minos. I now have full control of this body and may go where I wish." It was still the girls voice, yet it was underlined by Lady Gaea's voice.

"Yes, my Lady, it has worked." I agree with her, pushing myself off of the ground.

"Yes, now we have some preparations we need to get ready." Gaea said, a smirk on her face.

I knew what she was talking about, a plan to finish of Hades and the Underworld once and for all. Turning around Lady Gaea began to walk out of the door, calling over her shoulder for me and Sisyphus to follow.

After walking down multiple hallways and rooms we made it to the War Room, were we planned all our attacks. There was only three keys to get into this room, Gaea, Sisyphus, and I all had one. The room also had more guards than the throne room. For in this room was the most important items we had obtained. The items were the Sword of Hades, two keys to the Underworld, and the Helm of Darkness. Yes, Hades Helm of Darkness and his sword. When we had invaded the Underworld we had managed to obtain them, of course we had already had one of the keys to open the Doors of Death at least somewhat. Unfortunately, before we had been able to obtain the other ten keys to the Underworld Hades had sent them to places all around the Mediterranean. But that was what we were about to fix.

"The keys all are attached to the Underworld, which means they are also attached to death. We need to look in places that have had there death rates suddenly jump. It might not even be death but sickness, so check that as well. There are ten keys, which means ten places with abnormally high death and sickness rates for the past couple months. Check every city around the Mediterranean, I don't care how long it takes." Gaea ordered us.

"Yes, Lady Gaea." Both Sisyphus and I answer.

"Oh, and Minos. Those brats are still on the island looking for their missing friend." Gaea snarled.

"They won;t find either of them. Sooner or later they will have to leave the island. It will cause them more pain to think Jackson dead then to just kill them off." I answer her, knowing that she would like them dead.

"Very well. Know we have another problem. How do we get the Big Three to start a full out war between the gods?" Gaea asked of us.

"We could always make Hades believe that Zeus and Poseidon gave you the first key so that you could destroy him. We all know that they are always against each other and have always that the other would try to destroy them. And we can always tell him about the whole Hera thing. That sure would get him mad." Sisyphus suggested. I had to curse him in my head for thinking of that before I did.

"Yes. Yes, and with both Zeus and Poseidon having children that could at any time sneak into the Underworld, it would convince him all the more. Of course the Keys aren't on the same level as say, the Master Bolt, so another god can take them. Yes. That would most definitely start a war between them. Very good idea, Sisyphus. Go plant the evidence. Then after that we just wait. They will destroy themselves and we won't have to lift a finger." Gaea agreed, a smile planted on her face.

"We will get the evidence planted right away, Lady Gaea." I bowed to her before walking out, smiling.

Oh yes this will be good. The gods will destroy themselves and Gaea will take control of the world, placing me as her lead general. This was going just like I wanted it to. After planting the evidence, I would get rid off the one person who could take Gaea's favor away from me, Sisyphus. Time to go plant the evidence. I just wished that I could see Hades face when he thinks that his family has betrayed him. Oh yes this would be good.


	7. War is Inevitable

Nothing was going good. My kingdom looked like a prison riot with almost all of the ghosts trying to reach the Doors of Death, the Doors were being pushed open, I had no idea where my keys, sword, or helm was, having to send them to different places in the world, and worst of all was that my son, Nico, was missing. I wished that I knew where my son was and that I could go and get him, but I couldn't. For once I was willing to be nice to Percy Jackson and not try to kill him, I knew that he would go to save my son. I could only hope that Percy Jackson was quick enough. I was interrupted from my thoughts by the appearance of Charon.

"My Lord, I have news for you." Charon says.

"Very well. What is it?" I ask, it was probably more information on these riots.

"Well, you aren't going to like it," that piqued my interest "It see,s the reason that Gaea was able to get two of the keys was because Zeus and Poseidon gave them to her."

"WHAT!" I shout. Sure my brothers and I don't get along very well but for them to give two of my keys to Gaea...

"It truly is horrible, my lord. But I just heard it, an Iris message appeared with Zeus and Poseidon talking about how Gaea would destroy the Underworld and you, then they would have all the power and not have to worry about you. They sent their demigod children to steal the keys apparently." Charon says, his voice low.

"Their demigod children," I shout, so Percy Jackson was aiming for my downfall, he was probably going to kill my son as soon as he saw him, "If Zeus and Poseidon want a fight, then they will have it. It just won't be between me and Gaea but me against both of my brothers. Get my army ready, and send a little message to Zeus." If they wanted war then they would get it.

"Yes, sire, right away." Charon bows before walking away to get the Army of Hades ready, no one ever saw the cruel smile on his face or the glint in his eyes.

My brothers had betrayed me, most likely all the other gods had as well. When I defeated them they would all go to my dungeons and be chained up for eternity, except for Hesitia, I couldn't see my sister having a part in this. But Zeus and Poseidon would pay, especially if either of there children hurt my son. If one hair was out of place on Nico because of them, let's just say that their punishment wouldn't be pretty.

Turning around I walked further into the palace towards the armory, I might not have my sword or Helm, but I would still be a force to reckon with.

* * *

**Meanwhile on Olympus, 3rd Person POV**

The meeting was not going well. Zeus had called an emergency meeting to talk about the threat Gaea was posing. So far the only thinking that had happened was a flock of owls attacking Poseidon and a huge wave hitting Athena. They were now standing up and screaming at each other.

"Both of you SIT DOWN!" Zeus shouted in anger.

Both Poseidon and Athena became quiet and slunk back to their seats. Athena was glaring at Poseidon while Poseidon was muttering about how much of an owl head Athena was.

"Now, you all know why we are here. We need to figure out a way to stop Gaea."

"I still think you should have called brother up here as well. He has a right to know what you all are planning." No one had to look to know who had talked, it was Hesitia. No one was surprised either that she was defending Hades right to be up here.

"Hades has more important things to do. He has a kingdom that is being destroyed. But anyway let's us get down to busi-" Zeus was cut off by the floor under their feet beginning to shake.

The shaking was the equivalent of a 4.7 earthquake, but somehow all of the gods and goddesses managed to not fall to the ground. Cracks started to run through the ground and out of them skeletons began to claw their way from the earth. The shadows seemed to run from where they had been to form a figure in the middle of the room. As the shaking stopped the shadows broke apart to reveal Hades.

"Brother? What was the call for all of that?" Poseidon asked shocked, something was obviously wrong from the look on Hades face.

"You know what is wrong Poseidon, you gave two of my keys to Gaea! You want her to destroy me and my realm," Hades shouted at his brother before rounding on Zeus "Both of you. You want ultimate power, even if it means destroying me and working with Gaea."

Zeus stood up, already angry at Hades accusations "We have done no such thing. And you can just leave, don't you have a kingdom to protect." Zeus snarled.

"Oh, I'll be leaving, but not before telling you two more things. One, if your demigod children come anywhere close to me or my son, I will personally send them to Tartarus."

"You wouldn't!" came from Poseidon at the same time as Zeus' "You'll have to go through me first." Both were outraged that Hades would threaten their children.

"Second," Hades continued "This is war. You are willing to let Gaea finish me off, but I am not. After I leave war will begin, the Olympians against the House of Hades." Hades snarled at them.

Every god was shocked by what Hades had just said. He couldn't be serious, to declare war at this time.

Hesitia was the first to snap out of it "But, brother, you can not be serious? Zeus and Poseidon have not done any of what you have accused them of. Please, brother, rethink this." Hesitia pleaded.

Hades looked over to Hesitia "I am sorry sister, but you do not know what I do. I will tell my army not to harm you, for you have done nothing wrong. I will not rethink this though, my mind is made up. When I next see all of you, it will be in war." with that Hades disappeared, leaving all the gods to ponder over what had just happened.

* * *

Somewhere on the Island of Crete, Minos Pov

"Everything is in place." Charon said to me.

"Very well, very good job." I praise him before he walks away.

Oh yes, it was a good job, Hades believed everything that Charon had told him. By this time tomorrow the gods would be at war with each other, causing their own downfall. Gaea would then take power and I would have a position of power once again. Then I could get rid of the son of Hades. Everything was happening just as Gaea had said it would. Turning around I began to walk towards the throne room to tell Gaea the good news.

* * *

**Bianca's Pov**

It was Nico's birthday and we were both sitting just outside of Westover Hall. There was outside, it being the end of January. Nico was sitting next to me, just looking out at the snowy landscape. Deciding that it was time to surprise my little brother I took out a small package from underneath my jacket.

"Happy birthday, Nico." I say while simultaneously shoving the package under his nose.

My brothers eyes grow wide as he stammers out a thank-you . I just tell him to open it. I treasure the smile and pure look of happiness on his face.

"Thank-you Bianca." Nico lunges at me, his arms wrapping around me.

I laugh "No problem, Nico."

It was then that I felt a nagging in the back of my head. Something wasn't right but what was it. It came to me so suddenly that I was shocked, this was Nico's ninth birthday, that had been nearly five years ago. As I pull away from Nico everything fades out, turning into complete darkness. I didn't know where I was, but I knew one thing for sure, I would get out of here and find my brother. Even if I got sent back to the Underworld I had to tell him that I was sorry for everything that I had done while under Nyx's control. I began to walk in one direction hopping that I would find a way out of this place.

* * *

**Meanwhile in the Underworld**

All of the Underworld was getting ready for war. There was hundreds, no thousands, of skeletons in armor holding weapons ranging from swords, to bows, to guns. Some of the skeletons were riding man-eating horses. Surrounding the skeletons were Hell hounds of all sizes, including Cerberus. Flying over head were the furies and Stymphalian birds. The daemons were all either flying or in chariots, ready to fight no matter what. In his palace was Hades, staring out at his army, a look of pure anger on his face.

"Let the war begin."


	8. Time to Escape

_**Still not mine**_

* * *

It had been a couple days since I had been captured and so far we hadn't seen Gaea again, I didn't know why, but it was starting to scare me. At that moment I was sitting next to Nico, well more like Nico was laying on me. He had had a pretty bad beating yesterday and was exhausted as a result. He had fallen asleep almost instantly, while leaning against me, honestly I didn't care. He was half asleep half awake at the moment, just laying there. I jumped when the door was suddenly thrown open. Nico had jumped to, suddenly moving closer to me. I knew that he tried to be strong but was scared, he was just a little kid.

Standing in the doorway was Minos "Time for you to have a little chat with _Gaea."_

The way he said 'Gaea' sent chills up my spine. Suddenly there were two more people next to Minos. Minos commanded them to get us. They weren't the least bit gentle, purposefully jostling Nico's wounds. Soon we had the chains of and the shackles connected and were being led out of the cell. Soon the throne room was in front of us.

Minos pushed it open and we walked into the room. I was shocked, besides the monsters the only other person already in the room was Bianca. But she didn't look like Bianca, she was wearing a toga, a gold dagger was at her side, her hair was tied up in a bun, and most creepy were her eyes, which were glowing a bright green. I knew what that meant but didn't want to accept it. It just couldn't have happened.

"Welcome, demigods." It was Bianca's voice but was being underlined by Gaea's.

I knew that it was impossible to deny it, Gaea and Bianca were one now. It was wrong and horrible. Looking sideways I saw Nico, his eyes were wide an he looked shocked. His eyes quickly turned from staring in shock to being filled with anger.

"You monster! Let my sister go! Let her go!" Nico screamed at her.

The ground started rumbling, cracks beginning to form, and I knew that Nico was trying to use his demigod abilities. It didn't get more than being a few cracks for at that moment Nico let out a scream of pain as the shackles worked their magic. I could only watch as Nico fell to his knees, screaming for another minute till the shackles stopped their torture. Bianca/Gaea walked down towards Nico, kneeling in front of him.

"Your sister doesn't exist anymore, it is only I, Gaea. Give up your little fantasy of your sisters love, she didn't care about you anyway." Gaea hissed at him

"N-no. You're w-wrong, N-nyx was c-controlling her. S-she didn't w-want to do any of t-that." Nico stutters, his eyes darting around.

"How naive," Gaea mocks, standing up, "I just wanted you here so I could tell you some very important information. You see, Hades has declared war on Zeus and the other Olympians."

"W-what!" I spluttered out.

The gods were starting a war now? How stupid could they be. Didn't they realize that they had bigger problems than there clashing egos? If the gods were fighting then Gaea would have an easier time getting rid of them. From the look on Gaea's face she knew that. I looked over at Nico and saw that he had paled and was just staring into space, shocked. His dad had declared war, I could only guess why Hades started a war now.

Gaea's voice snapped me out of my musing "Yes, you see, Hades seems to think that the gods betrayed him and wanted me to destroy him and the underworld. Why he thought that I have no idea." You could easily tell by the look on her face that she had started these events. "Minos, take them back to their cell."

Minos nodded and grabbed us up, pushing us towards the door. I had a bad feeling that if we didn't get out now then we never would. After getting away from Gaea I motioned to Nico to get ready and then made my move. Kicking out I managed to hit Minos, who was in front of me. With a cry of anguish he fell to the ground. I spun around and kneed the other guard, who wasn't wearing armor. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Nico doing the same to the other guards. Minos started getting up, but before he could get up fully Nico slammed his foot down onto his head. Blood started to come from where Nico had injured his head. I winced at the cold brutality of what Nico had just done, I didn't care if Minos died, but I did care about this because it showed that Nico didn't care what happened to any of the people here.

"We need to gt out of these shackles." Nico states, his voice devoid of emotion.

I nod "Ya. Didn't Minos have a key?" I asked Nico

He knelt down and turned around, beginning to search through Minos pockets. After a minute or so he pulled out a pitch black key.

"This is it," Nico twists his wrist so that he could put the key into the shackles, soon there is the sound of clicking as the shackles fall of his wrists. Nico stands up and walks to me, soon my shackles are of as well.

"Which way do we go?" I might have memorized the way to the cell but I knew nothing about the other areas.

Nico pointed to the left "That way. There is a war room that way, that is the most likely area to have a map."

I nod and pick up two swords, handing one to Nico "We're going to need some protection." I say as Nico glances down at the sword.

"Not the type of sword I would normally use, but pickers can't be choosers." He says, offering a small smile to me.

I smile back to him before turning around and beginning to walk in the direction that Nico had pointed out to me. We had been walking for about ten minutes when we found the war room. It was fairly big and had a lot of maps and weapons. Looking around I found a map of the underground hideout we were in. Turning around I saw Nico picking up a sword, it was pitch black, just like Nico's Stygian iron sword, but something told me that it wasn't Nico's sword.

"This is my father's sword," Nico's eyes were wide with shock "How come Gaea has it?"

"We can figure out just what Gaea is planning once we get out of here." I say, trying to get Nico back onto track.

Nico opens his mouth to protest but before he can say anything loud bells go off. We immediately know what they are, alarm bells; they were just like the alarms in the Underworld. Looking at each other we came up with a silent agreement, we were going to fight our way out of here, no matter what.

Running out we find ourselves already surrounded. There were dozens of guards in armor, people who had come back from the Underworld, at least a dozen dracaena, a minotaur, and empusa. We were surrounded, and more monsters were coming.

"Put down your swords and come with us, if you fight we will bring you back to Lady Gaea the hard way." one of the empusa hiss at us.

I looked over at Nico and saw him holding the sword, pointing it at the monsters. It was now or never, this was going to be our only chance out of this place, I could feel it. Taking out my sword I pointed it at the monsters as well.

"Come and get us."

* * *

**Pov 3rd person Place Underworld**

The Underworld was a battle field, there were thousands of monsters, ghosts, hell-hounds, and skeletons, all fighting each other with no resistance. Standing at opposite ends of the battle field were Zeus and Hades, along with the other gods. None of the gods had felt ready to join in the fight. Yet. It was only a matter of time before Zeus and Hades fought each other, and when it did happen, no one would be safe.

The other gods were all worried, all of them knew the threat Gaea proposed and knew that this war shouldn't be happening. But of course Zeus couldn't just talk things out with his brother, no instead he decides to fight Hades. They didn't even know why Hades had suddenly declared war, not even Athena could think of a reason. The only thing that knew for sure was that this war was going to end up more bloody then the Civil war.


	9. Weight of the World

It was pitch black outside, the only light coming from the moon shining high up in the sky like a diamond, Not a sound could be made, not even from the animals that lived there. In fact, the only reason you couldn't hear the roars of the _Fourogatos _was because the animals were all in hiding. It was said that animals could sense fear much easier than humans could, and that night the animals knew something was going wrong.

The mice, shrews, and badgers had all gone hiding into their little burrows, the insects had disappeared completely, the _Kri Kri_ were high up on the mountains, hiding in the natural caves created by erosion, and the _Fourogatos _were hiding in their forest homes away from prying eyes. They were all in their homes, shaking in fear at what was going to happen in the next couple days, what would happen to the world. All animals, no matter how big or small, jumped at the sound of lightning, quickly followed by the earth shaking. The shaking lasted less than a minute, but it told the animals that the end was coming.

* * *

While everyone else was dealing with the escapees two men stood in front of each other, anger evident in both of their faces. The first man was tall, dark, and imposing, on top of his head was a crown, and startling electric blue eyes staring out from the sunken face. The other man was a couple inches shorter, and less imposing, yet he had the air of someone high in authority, his dirty-blonde hair fell around his face. These two men were on the same side, yet heated rivals. These men were King Minos of Crete and King Sisyphus of Ephyra. Both of these men had died hundreds of years before, but one had gotten rewarded for his crimes while the other was punished for eternity for his crimes.

"Well, Minos, what do I owe this...pleasure." Sisyphus drawled, putting emphasis on the last word.

"Sisyphus, if you know what is good for you, then I recommend you stay out of Lady Gaea's plan." Minos snarl was that of a wild beast, one that had been locked away far to long.

"What?" Sisyphus was very confused by Minos statement "What are you talking about? Staying out of Gaea's plans? If it wasn't for me she wouldn't have had the energy to get a body. Gaea needs me, and I am important to her." Sisyphus ended his statement with an air of authority and pleasure.

Whatever it was, something the King of Ephyra had said broke what little sanity the King of Crete's had had. With a snarl of anger he lunged forward, already drawing his sword out of it sheath. Within moments Minos had Sisyphus pinned to the wall, his sword pressing dangerously into his neck. There was a feral look on his face, one of complete madness, of someone whose mind had already been broken a long time ago. Sisyphus' eyes were wide as he stared at the Lieutenant of Gaea.

"You don't matter to Lady Gaea. You are just a pawn. I am the only one that matters. Soon Lady Gaea will be done with you, and will send you back to eternal punishment pushing that rock. Although you are beginning to know to much, getting to smart. If you don;t back down now, then I will make you. I will not take back seat" Minos snarl was filled with seething anger, hatred in the level of what Kronos had felt to the gods. Minos had finally gone mad.

With a swishing of clothing Minos retracted his sword, place it into his jewel encrusted sheathe, spun on his heels, and strode out of the room. In seconds Minos was gone from that room. Sisyphus meanwhile collapsed to the ground, gasping for the air that had been cut off by Minos' sword. As Sisyphus rubbed his sore neck, where a bruise was already forming in the shape of a sword, he decided on one thing, he would ruin the King of Crete, no matter what he was not going back to eternal punishment.

* * *

Annabeth was leaning on the banister of the Argo II. She had been out there for over two hours already, and even though she was tired, she would not give up her watch. She was hoping that at any moment her boyfriend would walk out of the small forest, a goofy smile on his face, and preferably an arm thrown over Nico's thin shoulders. Percy had to be out there somewhere, and Annabeth had a feeling in her stomach that wherever he was, he was with Nico. That though both scared her and gave her comfort, on one hand Percy could be getting hurt, on the other he would be able to protect Nico from whoever it was that had captured him. One thing Annabeth knew about her boyfriend was that he wouldn't leave Nico, even if it meant saving himself, he would never one of his friends, especially if it was Nico.

Percy had always cared about what happened to Nico. In Percy's mind he had to protect him because he owed it to Bianca, and that Nico was smaller and had obviously gone through the Underworld and back, literally. From what we had found out Nico had been stealing money, clothes, and food for that one year that he missing, as well as sleeping on the streets. The thought of Nico, who weighed less than ninety pounds, living on the streets worried all of us, including Chiron, Rachel, and Thalia. Percy cared about what happened to Nico, and if Nico was badly injured under Percy's watch then Percy would blame himself. Nico thought he owed Percy for all the times he had saved him and how much of a jerk he had been, but Percy also thought that he owed Nico for not protecting Bianca, for "letting" Nico run away from the Camp, for the gods messing with him every chance they got.

Annabeth prayed that nothing happened to either of them. Because I would break if Percy died, and Percy would break if Nico died. Until we had Percy and Nico back then we wouldn't be leaving. We were a big, dysfunctional, yet loving family, that included Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel, Frank, and everyone at Camp Half-blood. We never gave up on one another.

* * *

Sitting in her throne was Lady Gaea, a look of anger plastered onto her face, never once wavering. She was wearing a violet _chiton _that flowed gracefully to the ground, fitting her body perfectly. On her head sat a crown made out of all types of gems, from crystals to rubies to emeralds. On the highest peak of the crown was a giant sapphire, letting out a light glow to it. Lined against the walls were only half of what was usually there, for the rest were trying to track down the Ghost King and Perseus Jackson.

To say Gaea was angry was an understatement, when she had been told that they had gotten away from Minos she had destroyed over twenty of the guards. And when Minos came back he would be facing a punishment even worse, a skilled fighter shouldn't be able to be taken down by two children, especially when one wasn't able to use his powers. Oh, that was right, the child had found the key. Minos hadn't listened to Gaea's warning to put an enchantment on it and it had been taken by the Ghost King, who had proceeded to remove both pair of shackles.

But even if they did get out, they weren't going to get far, for Gaea knew exactly where they would head. They would head to the ship the other demigods were at. So far those idiots hadn't left the island, deciding instead to just wait and see if their friends would come to them. They would head there, joining up with their little friends, but before they could leave they would be getting a gift form the Earth Goddess. Oh yes, those two were not getting away from her. And she would be getting some consolation prizes as well.

* * *

The Underworld was in worse condition then it had been yesterday. And that was because today the gods had joined in. Today nearly all the gods, only excluding Hesitia, who did not wish to fight against either of her brothers, had joined into the fight, destroying everything that was in their paths. At one point Persephone and Demeter had face off against Athena, who had tried to reason with both of them against this war. But for them thy had no choice, Persephone was Hades wife, she had to stay, and Demeter would never attack her daughter. So a fight had raged between the three goddesses, and in the end the victor was , shockingly, Persephone and Demeter. Together they had been unbeatable, the two goddesses of agriculture's powers were stronger than anyone had ever expected. And with that win under their belt, it seemed that Hades was winning.

But that wasn't enough for Hades, he didn't want this war to just be in the Underworld, no, he wanted it to be on the Upper World as well. And that was just what he did. He broke part of the barriers between life and death and poured out his warriors of death, but not before Zeus sent down a bolt of lightning, transporting all near mortals away from the soon to be war ground.

As the dead poured out of the ground, out of the Land of the Dead and into the Land of the Living, Hades mind snapped a little more. It was something that had been long since overdue, everyone broke at some pint, the only question was if they would heal. For Hades most likely not, since he had nobody that would heal him, not even his wife, Persephone. The only thing keeping him even barely tethered to the world, keeping him from complete madness, was the thought of his son. He wasn't going to leave him yet. But if it was told to the Lord of Death that his son was dead, then the world and the gods would not stand a chance, because they would no longer be fighting someone who was sane but someone who would do anything for revenge.

For Zeus and Poseidon however they wanted this to stop. Not just to protect their children and the world, but because they also wanted to protect their brother. In all honesty they cared about each other, even if they wouldn't admit it. And for Poseidon, Hades was more than just another family member, when he had been growing up inside Kronos' stomach it was Hades he had trusted the most, his big brother. And now it was his turn to help his brother, something wasn't right with him, something had finally pushed his brother over the edge, and he was going to find out what it was and fix it. No matter what it took.

* * *

Up on Olympus, that was still onto of the Empire State Building, a, lone figure sat, poking at the flames of her fire. This women was Hesitia, goddess of the hearth, and for once she didn't care if her fire went out. To her everything was falling apart, Gaea was raising form her sleep, her brothers and sisters were at war, and the young heroes that were risking their lives to stop this oncoming war with Gaea would be forced to fight each other. Nothing was going right anymore, everything was falling into chaos. And unless her family saw that they needed each other then the world as we know it would be destroyed. The only hope, the only thing that kept the small fire flickering, was the thought of all those brave children who had beaten the odds before. Especially those who the world now would rely on once again, at least, according to Apollo.

Percy Jackson, Son of Poseidon, Savior of Olympus. A boy who had been brought into this and had duty thrust onto his shoulders at to young of an age. Yet, while most people would be angry at having so much rely on them, Percy had stepped up and taken control. Risking his life for the better good and his friends. If it hadn't been for the boy than Olympus would have fallen. Yes, he wasn't the prophecy child, but he had defended Olympus against Kronos and had given the gods hope, all though they would never admit it.

Annabeth Chase, Daughter of Athena. A girl who had gone through much lost and betrayal. A girl who had run away from home only to find another family, a family that had left her to soon. Thalia Grace sacrificing herself for her friends and Luke Castellan joining Kronos. Yet this girl still did the right thing and still could trust and love, unlike most children who had gone through less. Annabeth Chase had courage and strength that not many had, she had the determination to get through anything.

Nico di Angelo, Son of Hades, the Ghost King. A young boy who had lost everything dear to him in this world. First his mother, then his sister, all in horrible ways. A boy who had had horrible luck following him. A child that had become wary of trusting anyone for fear of being left alone, abandoned, or betrayed. This boy had known the harshness of life at a young age, only being ten when he had run off on his own. Yet, the boy trusted Percy Jackson, although it had taken a while, but now the boy would willingly trust his life with Percy. Percy was the only person Nico trusted with all of his heart, well him and Bianca, his late sister. Nico was strong willed despite having been hurt so many times over again. The boy wasn't one to give up.

And now the weight of the world would come down on their shoulders as well as the last of the Seven. Yet these three would play the most important parts, the ones that would determine the fate of the world. It was up to them to stop the war raging between the gods.


	10. Escape!

_**This is the last chapter that I havn't written!**_

* * *

"Come and get us," I said as Nico and I ran toward the monsters.

My first thought as my sword clashed against one of the guard's sword was how totally screwed we were at that moment. We were outnumbered one to twenty-four, at least. But there was no way I was going to give up, if this was the only way we could get out, then so be it. The guard wasn't that hard to stop, I just slammed the butt of my sword into his helmet and he went down quickly. Glancing around for a second I spotted Nico dodging a dracaena's sword.

I didn't have much time to see how he was doing for at that moment the minotaur decided to finish what he started when I was twelve. He ran toward me, his arms outstretched to catch me. Seemed he had learned something from our first encounter, just not enough. As he charged me I ducked, getting onto one knee, avoiding his arms, and did a shoulder roll around him. Getting back up I poised my sword towards the minotaur as he turned back around to me, snorting in anger.

"I defeated you when I was twelve,you really think I won't stop you again?" I had gotten stronger over the years, the minotaur was not going to stop me now.

As if in response the minotaur snorted and stomped his hove in anger, and charged at me. I was about to get ready to roll again when something heavy slammed into me, sending me toppling to the floor. My head hit the floor hard, sending black spots in my vision. For a second I was to dazed to really do anything, when the black spots and dizziness finally passed I looked next to me to see what had slammed into me. It was Nico. Blood was covering the right side of his face and their was a nasty bruise forming on his left cheek. He had just begun to rise from where he had fallen, stumbling forward when he took a step, definitely a concussion. Pushing myself up I stood next to Nico.

"Why did you slam into me?" I whispered to him.

Nico gave me a look that said _'You're an idiot_, "The empusa threw me at you." He then turned back around to look around us.

While we had been down on the floor the monsters and guards had surrounded us in a circle. Some were farther out, ready to capture us should we try and run, other were closing in on us, like the minotaur.

"Hey Nico?" Nico turned to look at me, "Think you could call some skeletons to help us?"

"Maybe. I'm not so sure, I'll try though," Nico held his sword out in front of him and shouted, "Dead, rise and protect me, the Son of Hades!"

A bunch of long cracks began to form in the ground, expanding till they went from one end of the room to another. The monsters and guards began to go backwards in fear of what was happening. The cracks began to open up and bright red fire shot from the ground, reaching at least thirty feet up. _I'm so going to die. _I thought as stared in fear and shock at the fire. Out of the fire walked at least two dozen skeletons, all in battle armor and with their weapons drawn. Weapons that ranged form swords to spears to bow and arrows. They formed their own ring around us, protecting us from the monsters.

"You did it Nico," I smiled turning to Nico. Nico was swaying on his feet, pale, and sweaty. "Nico? Are you alright?"

Nico placed one of his hands to his forehead, "I'm fine, I just haven't called any skeletons for a while."

I nodded, still not fully convinced. But if Nico thought he could keep going then I trusted him. Nico rose his sword once again and shouted, "Skeletons of the Underworld, attack!"

The skeletons response was instantaneous. The ones with swords all rushed forward, swords poised for the kill. The ones with spears threw them, skewering at least three monsters/guards per throw. The ones with the bows shot two to three arrows at a time, hitting their marks every time. Realizing this was are one and only distraction, our one and only way out, I turned around and grabbed Nico by the arms, pulling him away from the fighting.

"We've got to hurry and find a way out. Then we can find the Argo II and the others," I panted as we ran.

"Where to?" Nico asked as he once again stumbled while running.

That made me realize something, I didn't know where an exit was, didn't know where anything was. Looking over I saw Nico was staring at me, fear reflecting in his eyes. _I'm his last hope, I've got to be the leader. _I thought. "We look for an area that still has guards, if it still has guards then they were most likely left there to guard the entrance/exit," That was an idea Annabeth would be proud of. I had realized that all the guards were looking for us, so if there were some still at a post then they had to be guarding something, and if they hadn't been guarding the war room then the only thing more important would be the exit.

Nico nodded in agreement and we continued running. More than once I had to pull Nico back as he ran around a corner, nearly being spotted by a guard, they were searching for us so they weren't guarding the exit. We had been running for around a half hour when I saw it, the exit. I was right that there were guards around it, luckily though there was only five, we could defeat that many.

I looked over at Nico, trying to convey my message without saying anything, Nico seemed to understand and nodded. Putting my sword in front of me I ran forward, taking the guards by surprise. Nico was right behind me. I hit the first guard with the butt of my sword then moved onto the next one. They obviously hadn't had that much training for in less than three minutes they were on the ground.

Nico was counting them up, "One, two three, four...four! Where's the fifth one?" Nico turned to look at me, practically begging me to answer his question.

Looking around I spotted the last guard at the far wall, pushing a button in the wall. I realized to late what the button was. Alarms began to blaze once more around the base as the guard shouted into some microphone, "I've got them! They're at the exit! Hurry! Hurry!"

I groaned as I heard footsteps thundering towards us. Moving back I stood right next to Nico, who was shaking in fear, and probably pain form his concussion. In less than a minute we were once again surrounded, apparently Nico's skeletons hadn't lasted long because the minotaur was there as well. As the monsters and guards closed in on us I frantically tried to think of some way out of this. Water, I needed water, but we're underground, there's no body of water around, how could I find water._ Think, what did I learn in science, something about springs. Yes! There are underwater springs all over, so I just have to find one._

I tried to concentrate on finding an underwater spring instead of being a minute from being killed. I felt a familiar tug in my gut as I located the water, is was just to my left. I just had to figure out a way to get Nico out of here so he didn't drown. That's when it hit me, Shadow traveling. Now that he had his powers back and we were at the exit maybe he could transport us to the surface.

Leaning over I whispered, "On my signal Shadow travel us out of here."

Nico nodded so I turned back to the monsters nearing us. "Say 'Hello' to my little friend." The tugging sensation worsened as water exploded from the wall of the hideout. I felt Nico grab my arm and then darkness was surrounding us. My last sight of the hideout was of the guards and monsters trying to run away from the water crashing down on them.

Darkness swirled around me, making me feel sick to my stomach. But in less than a minute it was over and we landed on our backs, hard. Looking up I could see the blue sky and sun, which meant we were back on the surface. Looking around I saw that we were in a dense forest, one that was a great hiding spot. Where we were sitting was a round clearing with many fruit trees surrounding it.

Looking down towards where Nico was laying I smiled, "You did it N...Nico!"

Nico was laying on the ground, not moving, with labored breath. It seemed like he was gasping for air and he was paler than ever. Getting to my knees I leaned over him, "Nico!" No response. I put my fingers to his neck and was happy to feel a weak pulse, but that pulse was wavering. It was then that I realized what was happening. The same thing as when he called up a dozen skeletons when Kronos' army attacked Camp Half-Blood using the Labyrinth. He had used to much of his energy and was dying. For the first time I noticed that the grass around Nico was dying, turning brown like it hadn't had enough water. Nico was dying and we were in the middle of the gods no where with no nectar or ambrosia. We were screwed.

* * *

_**The next chapter and then-on-out will be written by me!**_


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